It's February and love is in the blogosphere. When I look at the guys in my books, Michael in TAKEN BY STORM, UNBROKEN CONNECTION, and CAYMAN SUMMER, and Scott and Derek in SING ME TO SLEEP, that my readers are kind enough to crush on, I know I owe a lot to heros from my reading past that I fell head over heels in love with.

When I first started writing Michael and Leesie's love story, I got feedback that the romance was awfully old-fashioned. I'm so grateful that Stephanie Meyers brought back old-fashioned love stories and old-fashioned heroes. My heroes would not have seen print if her heroes hadn't radically changed publishing--especially YA and romance.

The old-fashioned heroes that are an integral part of my writerly psyche are probably fictional crushes you'd never expect or never even heard of.

I think Ged from Ursula LeGuin's THE WIZARD OF EARTHSEA trilogy was my first ever fictional crush. This is a classic fantasy adventure, with only the barest hints of romance in the second novel (the fourth novel that features a love story was published later), but I fell in love with Ged and read it over and over and over. Ged, a humble boy with great natural power from a poor island of fisherman, goes to Wizard school, acts on a dare, and spends the rest of his life chasing the evil he unleashed on the world.

Next, enter Prince Andrei in Tolstoy's WAR AND PEACE. I contend that WAR AND PEACE is the most romantic love story out there. Every time I read it, I want Natasha to not be such a fool and marry him this time, but she always falls for that evil Kuragin. And then I want Andrei to survive his wounds. I'm always brokenhearted afresh. I would love to see a new movie made of from the most amazing novel ever written.

Captain Wentworth in Jane Austen's PERSUASION. I know, I know you all adore P&P. I do, too. But Captain Wentworth is way hotter than Mr. Darcy--at least I think so. Maybe I like Capt. Wentworth best because I also adore C.S. Forester's Horatio Hornblower and anything to do with tall ships.

I also love all of Mary Stewart's stoic British romantic heroes in her old romantic suspense novels that she wrote before her Merlin books (CRYSTAL CAVE, etc.). It's hard to choose a favorite crush, but Mark in THE MOONSPINNERS is wounded and needs makeshift nursing, so I think he gets my heart the most.

And, last, but not least, Aquila in Rosemary Sutcliff's THE LANTERN BEARERS, third book in the EAGLE OF THE NINTH sequence. I'm excited to see the new movie, THE EAGLE. I suspect it's based on the first book in the series. I would love it if they'd make all three. Aquila's sister is stolen by invading flaxen-haired Saxons, and Aquila's ability to love is hampered by pain, thirst for revenge, and a marriage of political necessity. His personality heavily influenced the character in my historical novel, MY ONLY LOVE, that I've now signed with an agent (YAY!!), and she's working hard to find it a publishing home.You can read the opening chapters of MY ONLY LOVE on my website's WIP page. Does Will feel crushable to you?

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Welcome!

I am Brandi Kosiner and this is my personal book blog. I am a 30-something stay-at-home mom to two girls. I love going to Disney, playing video and board games with my husband. I love Young Adult books, with a focus on paranormal romance, fantasy, dystopia and contemporary, especially dealing with illnesses, tough issues such as cutting, eating disorders, issues at home, etc.

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I am a personal book blogger. I purchase my books for review, get them from a library, an arc tour, from author or publisher for review, but I am NOT PAID for this service. I do it for the love of books.

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